Lift broken at work

How do you know that? Please don't assume we've never done a day's manual Jon in our lives or had to carry children, shopping, luggage, furniture up flights of stairs in our poorly serviced highrise block of flats day in day out.

Have you seen the company H&S policy? Is there a risk assessment regards moving these loads? Ask to see the updated version now there is no lift, it should have been updated to reflect this and briefed to all employees working with these loads. Has there been any training on moving these loads and how to do it safely? Sounds like it needs reporting.

FGS - the OP is NOT weird or aggressive. However there are an awful lot of argumentative posters on this thread who have never done a day's manual work in their whole life 🙄telling the OP that she should just crack on and stop complaining.

Op There are an number of laws regarding the issue that you are facing to discuss this further call 0300 003 1747, this is for the Health and Safety Executive

This really is the weirdest thread…

@Mitara You appeared to have solved your problem. I can understand concern for the cleaners and others. But what the heck are you expecting from this thread? You are coming across as very odd and aggressive in your posts. You’ve been given advice and are still arguing about the amount of stairs and the manger allegedly purposely not fixing the lift.

FFS!

I worked in a hotel 80 rooms, four stars. Housekeeping went on strike, just walked out. General Manager got all the managers in every department to do changeover. Making beds, cleaning bathrooms. We only did it once then refused.

Just walk out.

Really? When carrying heavy loads a normal person wouldn't use a lift? I think you're incorrect. The risk assessment for moving heavy loads will include using the lift.

In workplaces there is an expectation you will hold a hand rail whilst using the stairs, and carrying a heavy loads would make that impossible.

In a hospital or similar I would expect a datix to be raised pointing out the unacceptable increased risk of falls to senior staff and I would expect the lift fix to be escalated.

In the mean time I would expect the linen to be broken into smaller bundles and the work load to be shared across a wider group. I'd also ask them to investigate other mitigations such as joists or other tools to lighten the load.

Carrying heavy and unwieldy loads up multiple flights of stairs is dangerous and the more often it's done the more the risk occurs

Very droll, minister.

Yes walk them multiple times carrying stuff

And it's if it's a new demand. If you go for an interview and get told you'll have to climb the equivalent of 40 flights a day, then you can decide if that's the job for you. If you were told you'd never need to climb stairs, and took the job on under that understanding, that's another issue. Also, people can develop health issues. It's not simply about age, though several people state that (with no other health conditions), they found their joints ached when they hit menopause. And before anyone says it, yes, there are many older women who could skip up 40 flights a day-I am simply saying it's not abnormal for many people to have problems climbing lots of stairs, and just because someone finds it easy today doesn't mean they'll have no issues in the future. For me, the temperature would be relevant-I could happily climb, even carrying things, in a cool air-conned building, but up and down on a hot day in a sweaty stairwell? Nope!

I don't suppose the OP does keep all those things at home, but then places like Halfords, and plumbing, and heating shops and companies don't usually keep you waiting for more than a few days; unless you have something like a rare vintage car, and I expect that owners of such vehicles do actually keep extra parts in!

I think that @Mitara's idea is actually a brilliant one for the items that are well known to fail in lifts, especially for places like care homes, where I think that the OP probably works.

In the meantime, if the OP's work is a place that homes vulnerable adults or children, then the manager should ask their local courts, or councils, to get people who have been sentenced with community orders, or such like, to stop picking up litter, or painting over graffiti etc. and instead to do the heavy lifting until the lift is fixed. They would obviously have to be well supervised, and not be allowed in any of the vulnerable people's bedrooms, but I think it could be workable.

Also, the manager should have to show the paperwork/emails where the spare part was ordered, and any follow up posts telling the manager of any delays. I think that that should just be a regular rule for anyone wanting assistance from any outside organisation. Also, I think that when any of those organisations that I mentioned are requested to help, the request should be considered from any of the workforce, or the residents themselves, or even the residents family.
One last thought is that if there happened to be an army barracks near by, maybe they would be willing to help short-term?

So do I, so do most people.

But most people aren’t carrying heavy bags of linen up and down on top of a very physical job.

If you have never been a cleaner for a hotel (or whatever OP is) then you have no idea how physically demanding it is and now they’re expected to carry heavy loads of linen.

In every hotel or hospital etc you go to you will see huge trolleys of linen being taken in the lifts because they are heavy and it’s time consuming having to carry them up and down the stairs.

I hope you are not carrying heavy bags of linen, that really doesn't sound safe.

This was 30 years ago, to be fair, so around 1992/1993 - I'd hope that things have changed!

Believe it or not, it was actually booked by an organisation/charity for disabled people. They supported all kinds of disabilities, not just physical, but I'd say the majority of their members were in wheelchairs or had severe physical disabilities. It's inconceivable that they didn't check these things!

I was very young, and have no idea how the place was chosen or booked. At the time, I just cracked on with things and didn't really ask how/why such a bad decision had been made.

I suspect the idea was that it was a small place that only local skiers visited, so there would be space away from hordes of tourists. The trouble with that was that the local ski slopes didn't have ski lifts that could easily accommodate disabled skiers either!! And then the lack of accessibility at the hotel....

But yes, dreadful situation!

Googling it, does a lift used in workplace need to be fixed uk, it does say it needs to be legally fixed. It comes under the Health and safety act of 1974 and lifts should be regularly tested. Has it been subject to tests that it is in good working order? I worked in a care home as a student doing laundry and definitely needed a lift to take the clothes around to those on the second floor. Lugging up bags of bedding several times a week would be a lot especially if you are not fit or anyone disabled in the company is also entitled under the law to have access to a lift already in the workplace. Ivwould complain again citing the health act and about regular inspection for a lift.

I carry 'stuff' up and down most times but it depends if you're talking me doing it 20 times over an 8 hour shift or someone doing it 20 times in an hour really

Could they throw/kick the bags down, so they only have to carry them up?

This does sound awful, cleaners have a bloody hard physical job even without this and if they get injured from carrying heavy loads up and down stairs could be unable to work for months.

They should refuse to do it any more unless every single person in the building helps, including the boss who is too tight to get the lift repaired.

I have read your thread, please don't swear at me.

I acknowledge you are concerned about colleagues but shouting and swearing will not help them and will only make you appear irrational.

Support your colleagues by helping them check their contract t&C's contact union etc. but don't bang on at strangers on the internet if you don't want their input.

I go up and down 2 flights of stairs roughly 20 times in a working day. That's not a lot in a whole day.

Your company must have a head office - i.e. your boss's bosses. Contact them. You can do it anonymously if you like.

Not fixing a broken lift is wrong on many levels.

There's no point, it's the lift company engineer who assesses and repairs the lift, not your workplace there are hundreds of parts and many reasons lifts break down.